TXGCMN Newsletters

2022

June

• Major Milestone Completed with New Bird Rookery Island
• Gordon Hempton – Acoustic Ecologist
• Washington State’s Idea for Getting People Outside
• Pollinator Week June 20-26th, 2022
• Upcoming Citizen Science Surveys
• Next Month – National Moth Week!
• Organism of the Month – Southern Live Oak (Quercus virginia)
• Book Review – A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds, by Scott Weidensaul

May

• Upcoming Outreach Opportunities
• Texas Master Naturalist in Space
• What’s a Philadelphian doing in my Backyard? – Merlin Bird ID App
• Spring Training Class Field Trip – Katy Prairie Conservancy
• Conservation Delivery through the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act
• Reduce or Eliminate your Plastic Use During Plastic-Free July
• The Architecture of Bees Exhibit
• Pathogen May Eliminate Crazy Ant Populations
• Book Review – Garden Revolution: How Our Landscapes Can Be a Source of Environmental Change, by Larry Weaner & Thomas Christopher
• Organism of the Month –  Mexican Free Tailed Bat (Tadarida brasiliensis)

April

• Upcoming Outreach Opportunities
• Texas Master Naturalist in Space
• Investing in Binoculars for Nature Viewing
• Spring Training Class Field Trip – Houston Arboretum
  and Nature Center
• Lights Out, Texas!
• Tending Nature: Native Plants and Every Gardener’s Role in Fostering Biodiversity
• Bird Collision Monitoring with Houston Audubon
• Organism of the Month – Giant Water Bug (Hemiptera belostomatidae)

March

• Upcoming Outreach Opportunities
• Upcoming Plant Sales
• Master Naturalist Merchandise
• Spring Field Trip – Sea Center Texas
• Local Native Plants for Bumble Bees
• How I Got Into Leafhoppers
• Well Intended Actions – Unintended Consequences – Educate, Educate!
• Book Review – A Prehistory of Houston and Southeast
  Texas: Landscape and Culture, by Dan Worrall
  
• Poem – Frigatebirds on Westheimer 2
• Organism of the Month – Snowy Egret (Egratta thula)

February

• New Wasp Species
• Upcoming Plant Sales!
• Master Naturalist Merchandise
• Soil of the Month – Soil as a Plant Growth Medium
• Organism of the Month – Bold Jumping Spider
• Texas Coastal Exchange Launches 1000-Mile Living Shoreline Project

January

• Editor’s Note
• Dues are Due!
• Master Naturalist Merchandise
• Soil of the Month – Introduction
• Organism of the Month – Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway)
• Book Review – Remarkable Plants of Texas – Uncommon Accounts of our Common Natives, by Matt Turner

2021

December

• Naturalist Notes
• Katy Prairie Holiday Open House Dec 27th, 28th, & 29th
• Christmas Bird Counts Dec 18th-Jan 5th
• Dues are Due!
• Water of the Month – Tides Part 2
• First Day Hikes
• Identifying Feathers Using the Feather Atlas
• Organism of the Month – Triangulate Combfood (Steatoda triangulosa)
• Book Review – Finding the Mother Tree, by Suzanne Simard

November

• Naturalist Notes
• Holiday Gift Guide
  • Product Review – XENVO Pro Kit Macro Lens
• Water of the Month –Tides Part One
• ProPublica Releases Detailed Maps of Cancer Causing Air Pollution in the US
• Remainder of Powderhorn Ranch Donated to TWPD
• Organism of the Month – Lightning Whelk
• Book Review – On Meadowview Street, by Henry Cole
• Leptoglossus oppositus: Common name – “Stink Bug”
• Book Review –The Song of the Trees: Stories from Nature’s Great Connectors, by David George Haskell
• Willow Waterhole Greenway Receives $4 Million Gift

October

• Naturalist Notes
• Poem: Opossum, Oh Please
• Katy Prairie Conservancy Awarded $2 million in Funding for Wetlands Conservation
• Garden for Wildlife 45th Anniversary
• Book Review – A Thirsty Land: The Fight for Water in Texas, by Seamus McGraw
• Organism of the Month – Bushy Bluestem (Andropogon glomeratus)
• Texas Pollinator Bioblitz – Goldenrod Visitors
• Water of the Month – Turbidity
• Host Plant Specialization in Butterfly Caterpillars
• Poem: The Poem of the Possum

September

• Naturalist Notes
• Water of the Month – The Sound of Water
• National Estuaries Week 2021 is Sept 18-25th
• Katy Prairie Conservancy to Offer Plots in its Conservation Cemetery
• Book Review – Every Day Nature, by Andy Beer
• Lights Out, Houston! Aug 15-Nov 30th, 11 PM-5 AM
• Mimicry in Insects
• Review: The Bee Short Course for Community Scientists
• Pollinator Photography Tips by Heather Holm
• Organism of the Month – Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscala)

August

• Naturalist Notes
• Water of the Month – Ripple Map
• Mothing at Exploration Green
• Removal of invasive shrubs from a prairie habitat
• Advanced Training Approval Reminder
• A Choice of Pollinators

July

• Naturalist Notes
• Plastic Pickup Challenge July 19-25th
• Water of the Month – Ripples, Waves, and Swells
• Book Review – Bicycling with Butterflies by Sara Dykman
• Poem – Treasuring Things the Abyss Didn’t Want
• Note from Our Volunteer Services Director re: Hours Reporting
• Protect Your Pollinators
• H-GAC’s Regional Conservation Framework Recognized
• In Memoriam – Millie Morgan
• National Moth Week: Jul 17-25th
• Book Review – Armand Bayou Illustrated – A Life on the Bayou, by Mark Kramer
• Organism of the Month – Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanilla)

June

• Naturalist Notes
• Water of the Month – The Smell of Water
• UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration
• Organism of the Month – Southern Swamp Lily (Crinum americanum)
• World Snake Day July 16th
• Insects: In our lives and in our economy
• Prevent the Bite! Day & Night
• Book Review – Big Thicket Plant Ecology – An Introduction: An Introduction, by Geraldine Ellis Watson

May

• Naturalist Notes
• Water of the Month – Color of Water
• Organism of the Month – Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja)
• Native Plant Society of Texas Announces First Executive Director
• Katy Prairie Conservancy and partners announce award of 7mil for the Texas Coastal Prairie Initiative
• Book Review – Mycorrhizal Planet: How Symbiotic Fungi Work with Roots to Support Plant Health and Build Soil Fertility, by Michael Phillips
• Member Spotlight – Mary Horn
• Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful

April

• Naturalist Notes
• Flower Garden Banks Marine Sanctuary Expanded
• Organism of the Month Broom Moss (Dicranum scoparium)
• The Dude
• Water of the Month: Eddies
• Tech Review – Sibley Birds 2nd Edition
• City Nature Challenge 2021 Begins April 30th!

March

• Naturalist Notes
• Book Review: The Forest Unseen- A Year’s Watch in Nature 2012, David George Haskell, Penguin Books
• Organism of the Month: Texas Leafcutter Ant (Atta texana)
• Different Perspectives – Chinese Tallow and Honeybees
• Water of the Month: Eddies

February

• Naturalist Notes: Downy Woodpecker, American Forests Releases Tree Equity Scores for Houston Neighborhoods, Puddles
• Book Review: The Story of my Boyhood and Youth by John Muir
• Organism of the Month Western Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis)
• Member Profile – Candice Donahue
• The Story of Willow Waterhole Greenway

January

• Book Review: The Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson
• Organism of the Month: Squarestem Spikerush (Eleocharis quadrangulata)
• Let’s save the world!
• Google Lens: How did a snake become a lizard?
• Member Profile – Chatt Smith

2020

December

• Naturalist Notes
• Air Pollution a Cause of Death – First in History
• Organism of the Month: Sinewed Bushy Lichen (Ramalina americana)
• Know Your Spiders?
• Holiday with the Cranes!
• Book Review: The Evolution of Beauty: How Darwin’s Forgotten Theory of Mate Choice Shapes the Animal World—and Us

November

• Naturalist Notes
• International Bat Week Oct 24-31
• Book Review: Darwin Comes To Town – How the urban jungle drives evolution
• Houston Climate Action Plan
• Annual Meeting Recap
• Organism of the Month: Blue Mistflower (Conoclinium coelestinum)
• Best little carpenter-bee ranch in Texas

October 2020

• Climate Change Emergency: The Problems and the Solutions
• Buffalo Bayou Trail Repair – Part 2
• Book Review: Sparrow Envy
• Organism of the Month: Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus)

September 2020

• Buffalo Bayou Trail Repair – Part 1
• Your Insect Allies: Meet the Beneficial Insects Controlling Pests in your Garden – Webinar Review
• Book Review Vulture: The Private Life of an Unloved Bird Katie Fallon, 2020, ForeEdge
• Organism of the Month: Green Heron (Butorides virescens)

August 2020

• Tiny Treasures – under the mower blades!
• Organism of the Month Golden Silk Orb-Weaver (Trichonephila clavipes)
• In Memoriam: Dr. Larry Brown
• Claims that insects will disappear within a century are absurd, but the reality isn’t reassuring either.
• 2019 Galveston Bay Report Card

July 2020

• Mental Health Care During A Pandemic: How Wildlife Photography Helped Me
• Organism of the Month: Gulf Pipefish (Sygnathus scovelli)
• Homegrown National Park

June 2020

• President’s Note
• Book Review: Spirals in Time: The Secret Life and Curious Afterlife of Seashells
• Flower Garden Banks Status Report – NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program
• Point of view is everything
• Help Harris County Monitor West Nile in Our Community
• Sky of the Month
• Invasive Removal Provides Material for Pioneer Village
• Organism of the Month: Prairie Parsley (Polytaenea texana)

May 2020

• President’s Note
• Sightings along Buffalo Bayou
• Sandhill Cranes 6
• Organism of the Month Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor & Hyla chrysoscellis)
• Sky of the Month
• “Restoring Insects, the Little Things That Run the World”
• Member Profile: Shannon Morrison

April 2020

• President’s Note
• Book Review: Feathers: The Evolution of a Natural Miracle
• Sheldon/Jesse Jones Updates
• Organism of the Month: Fir Tussock Moth (Orgyia detrita)
• Exploration Green Update
• Tiny Safari
• I See Change

March 2020

• President’s Note
• The relationship between connectedness to nature, sustainable behavior, and happiness in children
• Getting to Know You
• Bird City Texas Certifies Four Inaugural Communities
• Organism of the Month:  White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)
• Book Review: Nature’s Best Hope: A new approach to conservation that starts in your yard

February 2020

• President’s Note
• Sky365: The Discipline of (Daily) Photography
• Book Review: Land of Bears and Honey – A Natural History of Easts Texas
• In Memoriam – Dr. Chris Mathewson
• Organism of the Month Common green lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea)

January 2020

• President’s Note
• 2019 Gulf Coast Chapter Accomplishments
• Steve Brennan Remembrance
• Experiences of a Nature Journaling Novice
• Organism of the Month: Ball Moss (Tillandsia recurvate)

2019

December 2019

• President’s Note
• 2019 Annual Meeting – Rockwall, TX
• Do-Over
• Organism of the Month:  Spiny Softshell Turtle (Apalone spinifera)

November 2019

• President’s Note
• Organism of the Month: American Bumble Bee (Bombus pensylvanicus)
• In Memoriam: Terri Ficker
• Holiday Wish List

October 2019

• President’s Note
• Organism of the Month: Beaver (Castor canadensis)
• Book Review: The Secret Life of Flies
• Yellow-Crowned Night Heron Is Official Bird of Houston

September 2019

• President’s Note
• Organism of the Month: Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus)
• Book Review: The Genius of Birds
• The jigsaw puzzle problem
• Biophilia

August 2019

• Mothing at Deer Park Prairie on a Saturday Night
• Organism of the Month: Longnose Gar (Lepisosteus osseus)
• 2019 North American Prairie Conference – Continued
• Allen Brymer Remembrances
• Sheldon Wetland Restoration Concludes

July 2019

• Book Review: Life on Matagorda Island
• Organism of the Month: Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium)
• 2019 North American Prairie Conference
• Book Review: The Sixth Extinction – An Unnatural History

June 2019

• Zoo Trip to New Texas Wetlands Exhibit
• Book Review: The Hidden Life of Trees – What They Feel, How They Communicate
• Thistles and not thistles
• Organism of the Month: Marsh Periwinkle (Littorina irrorata)
• Gulf Coast Master Naturalist Far Afield
• Results from 1st Spring Bioblitz at the Nature Discovery Center
• Heartwood Chapter AT Day

May 2019

• Organism of the Month: Neotropic Cormorant
• Associate Spotlight: The Wildlife Center of Texas
• Annual Global City Nature Challenge: Houston
• Book Review: Around the World in 80 Trees

April 2019

• Organism of the Month: Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides)
• Jesse Jones Park Adopt-A-Trail
• Wolves!
• National Poetry Month
• Larry Allain’s Fantastic Plant Database Available Online
• Book Review: Where the Sky Began: Land of the Tallgrass Prairie

March 2019

• Organism of the Month: Southern Skipperling (Copaodes minima)
• Is it a Bee or a …?
• Native Bee Natural History Overview
• Book Review: Dragonflies through Binoculars: A Field Guide to Dragonflies of North America

February 2019

• Organism of the Month: Gulf Coast Toad (Bufo nebulifer)
• Squirrel Nesting Season Has Arrived
• Member Profile – Jane Wood
• Associate Spotlight: Houston Museum of Natural Science
• Exploration Green Wins ULI Houston’s People’s Choice Award

January 2019

• Organism of the Month: Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
• Designing and Stocking an Outreach Booth
• Book Review: Exploring Galveston: A Naturalist’s Guide to the Island
• 2018 Gulf Coast Chapter Accomplishments